'I Would've Been Miserable 20 Years Ago Trying to Do That Job' — Matt Damon Says He's 'Still Kind of Unpacking' the 'Profound Effect' Filming The Odyssey Had on Him

Matt Damon has discussed however pugnacious it was filming Christopher Nolan’s adjacent epic, The Odyssey, which helium said had a “profound” effect connected him.

The Odyssey, written and directed by Nolan and owed retired July 17, 2026, is based connected Homer’s saga, and is described arsenic “a mythic enactment epic” changeable crossed the satellite utilizing marque caller IMAX movie technology. Matt Damon plays Odysseus, the legendary Greek king of Ithaca and the prima of the film.

Shots revealed by the debut trailer, below, amusement Matt Damon walking connected sand, trudging done a forest, exploring a cave, desperately trying to sail a boat, and, alongside his soldiers, hiding wrong the celebrated Trojan Horse arsenic it’s dragged from the sea.

In an interrogation with Netflix to beforehand caller movie The Rip, Damon said helium was inactive “unpacking” the acquisition of filming The Odyssey, but admitted “it did person a profound effect connected me.”

“If I look objectively astatine what was required to bash that job, I deliberation it came astatine conscionable the close clip successful my life,” helium revealed. “I deliberation I would've been miserable 20 years agone trying to bash that job. Because you were uncomfortable each day, but I truly enjoyed… like, profoundly enjoyed each infinitesimal of it.”

“Intellectually I understood that conception of, you're not successful power of what happens, but you are successful power of however you consciousness astir it,” Damon continued. “It's easier said than done. But to truly consciousness gratitude. And I deliberation due to the fact that it was tied into not lone the joyousness successful being capable to person a relation that great, with a manager that great, with a radical of radical that great, and a communicative that great, but successful that consciousness of nostalgia I had for however I started, however I came into the business, the feeling I had erstwhile I was shooting School Ties, and Freddie Francis was the cinematographer, and, I was like, this is truly happening. Back to, like, the precise archetypal feature, similar the 1 enactment I had successful Mystic Pizza, it was similar 3 nights of shooting this meal array scene, due to the fact that determination was a batch of sum successful the scene. And I conscionable retrieve being elated for 3 consecutive nights. Just wholly joyful.

“Doing The Odyssey this past year, it felt similar my 1 accidental successful my beingness to marque a David Lean movie, that I was making the past large movie connected movie that I was ever gonna get to make. And it's truthful comic to deliberation that it truly is each successful however you look astatine it. Like, yeah, I was bedewed and I was acold and I was bare and I was… yeah, each that happened.

“But determination was a feline who works with Chris connected a batch of his movies who was a Navy Seal named Duffy. And Duffy said to maine towards the extremity of the movie — due to the fact that those guys… similar to go that determination is simply a batch of discomfort you person to acquisition and tolerate. Almost cipher tin bash it. A very, precise tiny percent of quality beings tin adjacent bash it — and helium said to maine towards the extremity of the movie, ‘You ne'er retrieve however acold you were. That's not the representation that you have. That's a fleeting feeling and it's gonna pass, and you're gonna beryllium lukewarm again. You're conscionable not lukewarm now. And truthful get comfy successful the discomfort. Just spot it for what it is. It's not forever.’”

Earlier this month, Damon revealed helium slimmed down to his precocious schoolhouse value for the role. "I had a beard similar yours for similar a year," helium told Jason and Travis Kelce connected a caller occurrence of their podcast, New Heights. "I was successful truly bully shape. I mislaid a batch of weight. [Nolan] wanted maine thin but strong."

He besides noted that a circumstantial alteration successful fare helped him get there. "Just due to the fact that of this different happening that I did with my doctor, I stopped eating gluten,” Damon explained. “I utilized to locomotion astir astatine betwixt 185 and 200, and I did that full movie astatine 167. And I haven't been that airy since precocious school. So it was a batch of grooming and a truly strict diet."

The Ocean’s Eleven prima besides told the hosts however grooming truthful intensely for the relation felt similar playing a play of nonrecreational sports. "I ideate what that feels similar for you guys, wherever you're preparing," Damon said to the Kelces. "It's conscionable portion of your day, it's portion of your job, and you get truly routinized astir it and kinda physique your time astir each that stuff."

The Odyssey is expected to execute peculiarly good pursuing the breakout occurrence of Nolan's Oppenheimer, the Cillian Murphy-led biopic that fuelled 1 fractional of the Barbenheimer phenomenon. Oppenheimer earned a staggering $975 cardinal during its theatrical run, and walked distant with Best Picture astatine the Oscars. Following the debut trailer for The Odyssey is retired successful the wild, age-old debates astir “historical accuracy” reemerged.

Wesley is Director, News astatine IGN. Find him connected Twitter astatine @wyp100. You tin scope Wesley astatine [email protected] oregon confidentially astatine [email protected].